March 03, 2010 06:50 PM UTC

A Bridge Too Far?

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• by: Colorado Pols

Denver Post columnist Mike Littwin has some thoughts on the recent surprising turn of events in Washington, starring one Sen. Jim Bunning of Kentucky–an incident that could have far-reaching repercussions. How much did his overplayed hand change the game?

I don’t know what the Democrats did to deserve Jim Bunning, but I hope they’re grateful.

It’s not just any U.S. senator who would be willing to single-handedly shine a light on Washington dysfunction by single-handedly bringing Congress to a standstill.

It’s not just any U.S. senator who would have dared – with his lone vote – to block extending unemployment payments during a recession, to furlough transportation workers during a recession, to block COBRA payments during (did I mention?) a recession, to cut Medicare payments to doctors during the big health care fight…

It seems many people were confused about how the Democrats were having so much trouble governing with a 60-40 Senate majority. And they were still confused about it when the Democrats lost the Scott Brown decision and had to settle for a 59-41 majority. But Bunning has suddenly made the math all too clear.

In the United States Senate, we now understand, even a 99-1 majority doesn’t always work.

For days, until Bunning finally relented Tuesday night, the senator from Kentucky was able to use his one, lone vote to prevent a “unanimous consent” motion from passing – a motion that would have extended unemployment benefits.

He didn’t do this once. He objected 11 times, which may be – Elias is still checking – a modern-day record. The Republicans have already set a record for using the filibuster. You can see a trend here.

…It’s a tough road, but Bunning just made it that much easier. Meanwhile, Sen. Michael Bennet, in some fortuitous timing, will offer a bill today to change some of the Senate’s more arcane rules. He wants changes on anonymous holds, on earmarks and, of course, on filibusters.

You couldn’t pick a better time to call for Washington reforms. But if you’re completely in charge, as the Democrats have been, it’s hard to blame anyone else for not getting things done. Then along comes Bunning, who made his one-person stand for what’s wrong with Washington.

Democrats have been trying ever since Barack Obama’s inauguration to portray the Republicans as the obstructionist “Party of No,” but even as the GOP minority set records for blocking nominees and forcing 60-vote votes, it’s a narrative that has failed to gain traction. Democrats have lost standing while Republicans have ruthlessly pressed the classic two-pronged strategy of blocking everything, by any means necessary, and blaming their opponents for the resulting ‘inaction.’ It’s very similar to the tactics used by the GOP minority leading up to the 1994 midterm elections, when they took over Congress on a wave of carefully managed popular anger.

But by so visibly exposing the middle-finger (in this case literally) obstruction necessary to make it all work, there’s this new and interesting possibility that Sen. Bunning has blown it for them.